eve arden

There are so few portraits of Jane Austen, that people keep reinventing her image – either from imagination, or by ‘tweaking’ what already exists. One of the oddest is the so-called Wedding Ring portrait:

This has been in use for quite some time – from the New York Times‘ article announcing the formation of JASNA, to jackets for some decidedly scholarly tomes. There was always something about the face that felt familiar. One day the ‘why’ finally clicked: